dimanche 28 septembre 2014

Animals that don't Exist

The True Sea Monkey

The true sea monkey, Pan
veritas, no to be confused with
the commercially sold sea-monkey, Artemia NYOS,
is a little-known representative of the chimp-family. Living
on the coasts of western Africa, true sea monkeys (hereafter “sea
monkeys”) have suffered from pollution and over-fishing, and their
numbers have dwindled. Because of their cautious nature, humans
seldom saw the sea monkeys. Although this protected the sea monkeys
from hunters, it also left us unable to make any conservation
efforts, and their situation worsened. Since their recent discovery
by Prof. Seoseo of the Bamako Institute for the Study of Almost
Extinct Species (BISAES), scientists from all over the world want to
study the sea monkeys, and funding has been granted for their
conservation by the WWF, the U.N., GreenPeace, the I.M.F., and local
governments.

Although
his cousins are vegetarians most of the time, the sea monkey eats a
diet consisting mainly of fish and
crustaceans.
Another adaptation to his nautical habitat is the thickness of his
fur. To prevent heat-loss, and reduce water resistance, sea monkeys
have an extremely thick fur, similar to that found on sea lions. In
addition, their hands and feet are webbed, allowing them to move
freely in the water.

The
sea monkeys seem to live in groups of ten to twenty individuals. One
individual, presumed male, shows clear anatomical differences to the
others, which identifies him as the leader. As is the case in other
groups of primates. In other aspects as well, a group of sea monkeys
tends to resemble that of other apes. There is grooming, as well as
communal child care. And before going to sleep, they build a nest
with algae and driftwood to
sleep atop the waves.

After
the sea monkeys were discovered, ethnologists working in the region
made a connection between the
animals and a local legend. The legends tells of a spirit of the sea,
who is known to save or attack fishermen, depending on whether or not
they behave with respect towards the sea. When comparing the
prevalence of that legend against the presence of sea monkeys, the
two charts see to match.

It
is also believed that before being reduced to a few hundred
individuals at the most, the sea monkeys occupied the whole west
coast of Africa, and could very well be the origin of some of the
folklore surrounding mermaids.